Norwegian journalist Kjersti Flaa, known for her work in entertainment journalism and contributions to TV platforms like TV 2 Direkte, Elle International, and HollyWire, recently recounted a deeply uncomfortable interview she conducted with actress Blake Lively in 2016. Flaa, who has interviewed numerous celebrities throughout her career, shared that her experience with Lively during the promotion of Café Society was so distressing that it nearly led her to quit her job.
On Saturday, Kjersti Flaa uploaded a video to her YouTube channel, Flawsome Talk, where she revisited the six-year-old interview, calling it “the most uncomfortable situation” she had ever been in as a journalist. Flaa described the interview as a “nightmare” and shared how it left her doubting herself professionally.
Norwegian interviewer Kjersti Flaa shares her “nightmare” interview with Blake Lively, conducted in 2016 while Lively was promoting Woody Allen’s ‘Café Society’:
“Sitting down with Blake Lively and her co star Parker Posey for Cafe Society (2016) is the most uncomfortable… pic.twitter.com/E6hWzTcYYp
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) August 15, 2024
The interview in question took place in 2016, during the promotional tour for Café Society, a Woody Allen film in which Lively starred alongside Parker Posey. In the throwback clip, Flaa congratulated Lively on her pregnancy, a gesture that was met with a sarcastic response from the actress. Lively, who was expecting her second child at the time, mockingly replied, “Congrats on your little bump,” seemingly implying that Flaa herself was pregnant when she was not.
The interaction set the tone for the rest of the interview, which continued to be tense and awkward. As Lively and Posey giggled at the remark, Posey attempted to defuse the situation by joking about her own “bump,” which only added to the bizarre atmosphere. Kjersti Flaa, meanwhile, struggled to steer the conversation back on track, trying to engage the actresses in a discussion about the film’s 1930s-era fashion. However, this was met with further resistance from Lively.
Lively, instead of answering the question, shifted the focus to gender-based inquiries in the film industry. She pointed out that people often ask women about their clothes, but rarely pose the same questions to male actors. Without directly addressing Flaa’s question, Lively remarked to Posey, “Everyone wants to talk about the clothes, but I wonder if they would ask the men about the clothes.”
Despite Flaa’s polite insistence that she would, in fact, ask male actors about their outfits, Lively and Posey continued discussing their male co-stars’ fashion choices while largely ignoring Flaa’s attempts to redirect the conversation.
The video of the interview has since gone viral, sparking widespread backlash against Lively’s behavior. Social media users were quick to come to Flaa’s defense, calling out the actresses for their “weird and uncalled for” actions. Many praised Kjersti Flaa for maintaining her professionalism throughout the difficult interaction, with one commenter noting, “They were so rude it was hard to watch. Well done you for not joining in.”
Flaa’s recollection of this interview comes at a time when Blake Lively is embroiled in controversy surrounding her latest film, It Ends With Us
. The movie, based on Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel, deals with themes of domestic violence and intimate partner violence (IPV). Rumors of tension between Lively and her co-star and director, Justin Baldoni, have emerged, suggesting that the two clashed over creative differences during filming and promotion.
never thought i’d start to dislike Blake Lively of all people
— Erèn (@erenfromtargeet) August 15, 2024
The friction between Lively and Baldoni is reportedly not just creative. According to sources, Lively commissioned her own cut of the film, conflicting with Baldoni’s vision, which led to tensions on set. Additionally, while Baldoni has been praised for focusing on the film’s central themes during interviews, Lively has been criticized for seemingly downplaying the seriousness of the story by focusing on lighter aspects, such as her character’s profession as a florist.
This latest controversy, coupled with the resurfacing of Flaa’s uncomfortable interview, has cast Lively in a negative light, with many questioning her professionalism and attitude towards both her colleagues and the press.
i feel so sorry for this interviewer 🙁
— noah ⚡️ (@playboykylie) August 15, 2024
Kjersti the whole time pic.twitter.com/2m1pid8qzy
— YungDagger (@YungDagger808) August 15, 2024